Sidewinder Insider Archives - Page 11 of 27

Where the Cosmos go, I’ll follow

What’s in a name?

**Scott Adamson’s column on soccer appears periodically, usually when he’s feeling especially soccerish.**

Well, if the name happens to be “New York Cosmos,” what’s in it for me is 23 years of fandom spread out over nearly half a century.

There were the Cosmos of the original North American Soccer League (1970-85), the Cosmos of the “new” NASL (2013-17), the National Premier Soccer League Cosmos (2018-19) and coming in August, the NPSL Members Cup Cosmos.

“We’re very excited to launch the Members Cup,” Cosmos Senior Vice President Joe Barone said. “It’s an important step to developing a full season, independent league where the New York Cosmos can grow and thrive.”

Yeah, about that … where we go from there, nobody knows.

What I do know is that wherever they go I’ll go with them, because I’m committed.

Now before I go further let me say that, yes, I’m acutely aware that the Cosmos of 2019 and the Cosmos of 1970 have little more than a name and badge in common. A club that spent the last two years playing short season adult amateur soccer doesn’t have much of a hereditary link to the one that used to draw 70,000 fans to Giants Stadium.

If a new basketball league came along, put a team in Seattle and named them the SuperSonics (which they couldn’t because they’d get sued by the NBA, but ignore that for a second because I’m trying to make a point here), that team would have no real ties to the Sonics of 1967-2008.

But guess what?

I don’t care.

I’m a sports fan, and sports fans don’t have to be logical.

I worshipped the original team, and after the brand went dormant for nearly 20 years and was reborn in the “NASL of a Lesser Soccer God,” I didn’t quibble with details.

As far as I was concerned, the Cosmos were back.

At no point did I expect the new Cosmos to sign Messi and Ronaldo or rival the Yankees or Mets for the attention of sports fans in the Big Apple. Still, the Boys In Green were not only one of the reasons I fell in love with the Beautiful Game, but why I stayed in loved with it.

Plus, I kinda liked the rebooted NASL, thinking that perhaps one day it might give Major League Soccer some headaches.

Instead it’s now in legal purgatory, and I’m starting to believe there’s no way in hell it’ll ever come back.

That’s what led the Cosmos to the NPSL. And just days after playing Miami FC for the league title on Saturday they’ll join Chattanooga FC, Detroit City FC, Michigan Stars FC, Milwaukee Torrent, and Napa Valley 1839 FC in what was previously known as the Founders Cup – and much larger.

“We are expecting a high level of competition in the Members Cup, and we are so thankful for (owner) Rocco Commisso’s commitment to the club and this new exciting league,” New York Coach Carlos Mendes said.

When the “NPSL Pro” initiative was first announced there were 11 members and it was set up to be a new insurgent league that wouldn’t be bound to the whims of the United States Soccer Federation. The NPSL is governed by the United States Adult Soccer Association.

But along came the National Independent Soccer Association – reinvented as part of the USSF structure and set to start its inaugural season this fall – and several Founders Cup founders (Including Miami FC, Oakland Roots, California United Strikers FC) found it better suited their future plans, so they pulled out.

Which, if any, current Members Cup clubs decide to join NISA in 2020 remains to be seen.

I suppose the Cosmos could be one, but it seems unlikely since Commisso isn’t someone interested in doing the bidding of the USSF. In June he purchased Serie A side ACF Fiorentina, and in 2018 famously proposed a $500 million investment in USSF that would revive the NASL and introduce promotion/relegation.

U.S. soccer officials weren’t interested, and it’s hard to imagine Commisso jumping at the chance to hook up with NISA.

But if not NISA, what?

After the NPSL Members Cup is done, the league’s pro plans appear to be off the table for the forseeable future.

In a perfect world, I’d like to see the Cosmos, Chattanooga FC and Detroit FC move forward together. Of course in a perfect world, I’d like to see Asheville City SC and Greenville FC join them.

But lower division soccer – and I say this out of love – is kinda like a sports version of the Monty Python skit “100 Yards For People With No Sense of Direction.” With myriad leagues and clubs, finding a common path is a big ask.

That being said, whichever direction the Cosmos head, I’ll follow.

After all, they’re my club.

In praise of grassroots soccer

**Greenville FC and Chattanooga FC square off at Sirrine Stadium. (Scott Adamson photo)**

Supporting local soccer is quite convenient for me considering the local soccer team I support plays just a little over two miles from my house.

That team is Greenville Football Club, the National Premier Soccer League squad that wrapped up its 2019 regular season on Saturday with a 3-1 victory over Chattanooga FC.

After calling Furman University’s Eugene Stone Soccer Stadium home in their inaugural campaign last year, they moved to venerable Sirrine Stadium this summer.

My latest trip to the historic venue (it’s been around for 83 years and its concrete steps and seating show it) served a couple of purposes.

One, it allowed me to buy a ticket and contribute a few dollars to GVLFC, which is important. Investing in community soccer involves your money as well as your time.

And two, I got to see the club that I “own.”

I joined 3,287 of my closest friends and bought a combined $880,750 worth of equity shares in Chattanooga FC. This club, grounded in a community-based philosophy, is the model for everything right about American soccer – and everything it could be.

I wanted to be a (small) part of it all, even though Friday was the first time I’d ever actually seen them play live.

It was a fun night.

I spent most of it roaming the stadium, taking turns eavesdropping on the respective supporters groups (the Milltown Operatives and Chattahooligans) and enjoying an intense match.

Thing is, had brothers Marco and Richard Carrizales not decided to put an NPSL club in the Upstate of South Carolina, I might still be largely ignorant when it comes to lower division soccer.

Like a lot of other people I know, I’d fallen into the trap of “big box” American soccer, convincing myself that since it had “Major League” in its title it was the only domestic brand of association football I needed to follow.

Oh, over the years I’d kept up with the Atlanta Ruckus/Silverbacks in the A-League, United Soccer Leagues First Division and rebooted North American Soccer League, and cheered for the New York Cosmos when they rose from the soccer grave, but paid no attention to the adult amateur game.

Turns out, though, I had it all backwards. Without strong grassroots soccer, the sport will eventually wither away in this country.

So when I found out the NPSL was coming to town, I started doing research on the league. That led to several other “discoveries,” such as the United Premier Soccer League, Women’s Premier Soccer League and other circuits that often operated (and still operate) far from the spotlight.

GVLC proved to be my gateway club, leading me to find and embrace Asheville City SC and soak in the cool soccer cultures of my two favorite Villes.

From there I learned the story of Chattanooga FC, which led me to start following another community-first club, Detroit FC, and others that are building from the ground up instead of the billionaire down.

It wasn’t long before I concluded the Beautiful Game was still quite attractive even without a $200 million franchise fee.

I’m immersed in the highs and lows and successes and failures of lower division soccer, and now I find myself absorbing all I can about the myriad men’s and women’s teams scattered throughout the country.

Had I stayed in my bubble, I might’ve thought the dormancy (and likely death) of the modern NASL meant my longtime support of the Cosmos was pointless.

But here they are – undefeated in NPSL play, expected to challenge for a title, and then heading to the Founders Cup (a professional offshoot of NPSL) in the fall.

More immediately, though, I’m excited about this weekend’s NPSL playoffs.

Lee Squires’ Greenville squad stands at 5-1-4, wrapped up the second seed in the South Region Southeast Conference Division playoffs behind Chattanooga, and has shown great improvement from 2018’s maiden voyage team.

Asheville City SC and Inter Nashville SC fill out the four-team playoff field in an elimination event that will take place at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga Friday and Saturday.

A couple of years ago, I wouldn’t care a thing about the NPSL postseason. Hell, I wouldn’t even know about it.

Now I do.

It reminds me of a scene in the movie “Damned United” when manager Brian Clough is trying to put assistant Peter Taylor in his place.

Taylor was having none of it.

“Oh, yes, you’re the shop window, I grant you that,” Taylor said. “The razzle and the bloody dazzle. But I’m the goods in the back!”

Thanks to Greenville FC, I’m no longer starstruck by the razzle and the dazzle of franchise soccer. My hometown club helped me realize the goods in the back are just two miles from my house.

Me, Mia Hamm, and playing like a girl

**Memorabilia from the 1996 Olympic Games reminds me of a story that I’ll be more than happy to tell …**

So, have you ever played soccer against Mia Hamm?

**Scott Adamson’s sports column appears pretty much whenever he feels like writing it.**

I have.

Yessir … she and I shared Berylson Soccer Park (now Preston Goldfarb Field at Berylson Soccer Park) on a hot July day in Birmingham, Alabama, and she even blocked one of my shots from her goalkeeper spot.

“Wait a minute,” you say. “Mia Hamm (now Mia Hamm-Garciaparra) played forward for the United States Women’s National Team. She was a two-time World Cup winner, two-time Olympic gold medalist and one of the most famous women’s soccer players of all time.

“And you’re … you. What could possibly put you two on the same field at the same time?”

Glad you asked.

Back in 1995 – a year before Atlanta hosted the Olympic Games where Birmingham’s Legion Field was a designated venue for men’s and women’s soccer competition – Birmingham-Southern College hosted a “One Year Out” extravaganza.

Aside from a news conference featuring Hamm and Hank Steinbrecher (former secretary-general of the United States Soccer Federation), there was a soccer match between media members and Birmingham’s Olympic organizers.

During warm ups, Hamm (who hung around to watch but didn’t actually play in the game) invited anyone who was interested to grab a ball and take a few shots at her.

I was anyone and I was interested, so I did.

Best I recall, I sent a slow worm-burner straight at her feet … the ball might’ve even stopped before it reached her.

I was a tad nervous, and although I played high school soccer it had been many, many years since I “suited up.” Plus, my skill level was always closer to George Worst than George Best.

Still, if I want to claim I played soccer against one of the sport’s greatest stars, I can.

And just did.

It’s a huge exaggeration that could easily be classified as a lie, of course. However, when you get to interact with one of your sports idols, you take liberties.

The women’s teams that have represented the United States in the World Cup and Olympics have been dear to me since the first WWC in 1991.

It wasn’t just that they showed Americans were capable of being elite soccer players – although they most certainly did – it was because I already had great respect for the women’s game.

See, back in 1978 when I played for the Huffman High School boys, we scrimmaged the girls team.

I’d love to tell you that before then I was already a strong proponent of sports equality, but I’d be lying.

I doubt I gave it much thought at all because I was too busy working twice as hard just to be half as good as the other guys on my team.

And before our scrimmage, I’m sure I assumed we’d have a relatively easy time, especially since both teams were told to treat it like an actual match and play as hard as we could.

Details from 41 years ago are a bit sketchy, but the one thing I remember is the final score was 2-2.

I don’t recall who scored for either side – I have no memory how many times I was beaten to a ball – but a draw in a game seen by no one other than the coaches and participants forever altered my view of sports.

The phrase “you play like a girl” suddenly became a compliment.

By the time women’s soccer became a “thing” I was already a fan, so when Hamm showed up in Birmingham it was hard not to be a fan boy.

And my appreciation for women’s soccer has only grown over the years, extending far beyond my borders. I love seeing the different teams, different stars and different styles from across the globe. When the world comes together for the Beautiful Game, it makes things seem even more beautiful.

Covering Olympic soccer in Birmingham in 1996 allowed me to watch Japan, Brazil and Germany play, and I was introduced to Brazilian star Pretinha, who scored four goals in the tourney and became one of my favorite athletes.

And although the U.S. team never made a stop at Legion Field during those Games, I still saw players such as Hamm, Briana Scurry and Brandi Chastain when they came to town to play friendlies.

By the time the 1999 WWC came along, I felt like I knew the American squad.

After Chastain’s spot kick – and Scurry’s brilliant performance in goal – lifted the U.S. to a 0-0 (5-4) victory over China in the final, everybody knew the “99ers.”

The WWC has taken up a great deal of my viewing time over the last month, and I hope today’s final between the United States and the Netherlands is a classic.

Regardless of how it plays out, it gave me a great excuse to talk about the time I played against Mia Hamm.

Have I told you that story before?